Method and apparatus for enhancing biological product safety, flavor, appearance and shelf-life

Abstract

A method and apparatus by which flowers or food products are treated for the elimination of pathogenic and spoilage bacteria, the scavenging of free radicals that cause oxidative decay, the enhancement of flavor, the stabilization of fats, and the extension of shelf life that consists of alternately exposing the product to a vacuum environment and a saline solution containing organic acids for a predetermined period of time, including such method and means that includes automated devices that is pre-programmed to maximize effectiveness of the process for its intended purpose while minimizing any associated damage to the processed product.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60 / 844,223 filed Sep. 13, 2006.FIELD OF INVENTION[0002]The present invention relates in general to the processing of biological and food products and, more specifically, for processing said food and biological products to reduce bacteria and fat content and improve flavor, product appearance, and shelf-life.BACKGROUND OF INVENTION[0003]The food processing industry is continually developing new approaches to preparing food products for human consumption. Generally, these approaches attempt to improve the overall consistency and quality of food and biological products delivered to the consumer. In addition, there is a desire in other industries that handle and process certain biological products that end-consumers see and purchase, such as cut flowers, to improve their appearance and shelf-life. In particular, processors adopt various methods and systems to impro...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0014]Another technical advantage of the invention is the level of automation incorporated. The incorporation of a microprocessor with predetermined control programming and instructions to send predetermined commands to material sources such as water, organic acid(s), saline solution, additives, vacuum motors, and piston effectively frees the operator to only be concerned with the proper selection of the biological product to treat. The invention treats the selected biological product in the partial vacuum atmosphere and processing solution based upon predetermined exposure and submersion time schedules as well as for a predetermined overall length of processing time based upon the product selected by the operator. The invention also mixes the proper components (both types and quantities) to create the proper processing solution for the biological material selected by the operator as well as lowers the atmospheric pressure in the vacuum dip processor to the proper level for vacuum treatment. This removes a significant amount of human intervention, permits more effective use of the operator's time while processing occurs, and produces a more consistent product from the vacuum dip processor.

is the level of automation incorporated. The incorporation of a microprocessor with predetermined control programming and instructions to send predetermined commands to material sources such as water, organic acid(s), saline solution, additives, vacuum motors, and piston effectively frees the operator to only be concerned with the proper selection of the biological product to treat. The invention treats the selected biological product in the partial vacuum atmosphere and processing solution based upon predetermined exposure and submersion time schedules as well as for a predetermined overall length of processing time based upon the product selected by the operator. The invention also mixes the proper components (both types and quantities) to create the proper processing solution for the biological material selected by the operator as well as lowers the atmospheric pressure in the vacuum dip processor to the proper level for vacuum treatment. This removes a significant amount of human intervention, permits more effective use of the operator's time while processing occurs, and produces a more consistent product from the vacuum dip processor.

Problems solved by technology

The processing promotes microbial intervention, which greatly diminishes the bacteria count in the biological product that results in degradation of the product.

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